Lights go off around globe and Istanbul for Earth Hour
ISTANBUL
New York’s Empire State Building, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and the Sydney Opera House were plunged into darkness on Saturday for the annual Earth Hour campaign, leading a global effort to raise awareness about climate change.
Organizers said the official YouTube channel for Earth Hour was seeing some 20,000 visits per minute as the day rolled on. Among US East Coast landmarks hitting the light switch was the under-construction “Freedom Tower” in lower Manhattan, steadily rising above the New York skyline in place of the destroyed World Trade Center towers, as well as the headquarters of the United Nations.
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the UN was turning off its lights “in solidarity with the men, women and children -- 20 per cent of all humankind -- who live with no access to electricity,” adding that the Earth Hour movement was “a symbol of our commitment to sustainable energy for all.”
Japan’s Tokyo Tower interrupted its sunset-to-midnight lighting to take part, as organizers said the Earth Hour was an opportunity to pray for last year’s earthquake and tsunami disaster.
In Hong Kong the city’s skyscrapers turned out their lights dimming the usually glittering skyline. Tourists and locals snapped pictures, although many were unaware of what was behind the switch-off.
Compiled from wires by Hürriyet Daily News Staff.